Place of birth Solna, Sweden 2001–2002 Inter Orhoy Weight 86 kg 1998–2000 Essinge IK Height 1.96 m | Number 10 Role Footballer Playing position Name Henok Goitom Date joined 2009 | |
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Date of birth (1984-09-22) 22 September 1984 (age 31) Current team Eritrea national football team (Forward) | ||
10 henok goitom
Henok Goitom (Tigrinya: ሄኖከ ጎይትኦም?/Arabic: هينوك غويتوم; born 22 September 1984) is an Eritrean professional footballer who plays as a centre-forward for AIK Fotboll.
Contents
- 10 henok goitom
- Henok soccer skills
- Early life
- Udinese
- Spain
- AIK
- Getafe
- San Jose Earthquakes
- Return to AIK
- International career
- Club
- International
- International goals
- References
Henok soccer skills
Early life
Goitom was born in Solna, Stockholm, and raised in nearby Husby. His parents were born in Eritrea.
Udinese
Goitom moved to Italy in 2004 to join Udinese Calcio, rarely being an option during his short stay. However, in his sole Serie A appearance, on 19 February 2005, he only needed seven minutes as a late substitute to score the 90th minute 1–1 equalizer against Inter Milan.
Spain
Subsequently, Goitom served a two-year loan in the Spanish second division with Ciudad de Murcia. He netted 15 league goals during his second season.
In 2007, Goitom was released by Udinese and signed a four-year deal with neighbouring Real Murcia, for a reported €3 million. The president of UD Almería, Alfonso García, however, announced the club would take matters to court: as he appeared before the media during the presentation of Aitor López Rekarte, showed journalists papers which proved an agreement had already been reached between Almería and Udinese.
With Murcia, Goitom only scored twice during the entire campaign, which saw the team eventually relegated from La Liga as last. In July 2008 he was loaned for one season to fellow league side Real Valladolid, which had an option to buy at the campaign's closure.
Established as first-choice, Goitom netted twice as Valladolid beat Recreativo de Huelva 3–2 away on 8 March 2009, but was also sent off during the match (as teammate Álvaro Rubio). He finished the season as team top scorer, at ten.
In late July 2009, Goitom was released by Murcia and joined fellow league side Almería, replacing Sevilla FC-bound Álvaro Negredo. His 2009–10 season output consisted of one goal, in a 1–1 home draw against CD Tenerife; also, even though he was the only pure striker in the squad, he was never an undisputed starter, but the Andalusians retained their top division status in the end.
On 19 January 2011, Goitom scored one of Almería's most important goals, netting a penalty kick in a 3–2 win at Deportivo de La Coruña (4–2 on aggregate), with the club reaching the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey for the first time ever (he added one more in the competition, against Real Sociedad). However, he again only netted once in the league, in a 2–2 home draw against Atlético Madrid, and the club returned to the second division after four years; in mid-August 2012, he terminated his contract.
AIK
On 16 August 2012, Goitom signed with his hometown club AIK Fotboll in the Allsvenskan. In November 2015, it was announced he would be released when his contract ended on 31 December.
Getafe
On 22 March 2016, after being without a club for almost three months, Goitom agreed a short-term deal at Getafe CF. He made his debut about a week later, coming on as a second half-substitute in a 0–2 away loss against Rayo Vallecano.
Goitom only totalled 125 minutes of action during his spell, and his team suffered top flight relegation.
San Jose Earthquakes
On 10 August 2016, Goitom joined San Jose Earthquakes on a free transfer. He made his Major League Soccer debut nine days later, coming from the bench in a 1–2 loss to Houston Dynamo at the Avaya Stadium.
At the end of the season, where he only started in two of his appearances, the club announced that they would not be exercising their option to extended Goitom's contract.
Return to AIK
On 3 March 2017, it was announced that Goitom had signed a two-year contract with his former club AIK, thus returning to his birth country and its top flight.
International career
Goitom was a regular starter for the Swedish under-21 team during 2006, and played for the nation during qualification for the 2006 and 2007 UEFA European Championships. He was on the verge of breaking into the full squad for the 2006 FIFA World Cup squad in Germany, but did not make the final cut.
In September 2015, at age of 30, Goitom made an official request to FIFA for permission to play for Eritrea. On 10 October he gained his first cap, in a 0–2 home loss to Botswana for the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers; he scored in the return leg, to a final 1–5 defeat on aggregate.